Stocks in London gain; Vodafone, easyJet in spotlight

PolyaLesova

FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) -- British stocks rose on Monday, extending their gains from the previous session, as better-than-expected U.S. jobs data continued to underpin market sentiment.

The FTSE 100 index (UKX) closed up 0.2% to 5,439.19 points. The index rallied on Friday after the U.S. government reported that the economy lost 54,000 nonfarm jobs in August, far fewer than economists had expected.

U.S. markets are closed on Monday for Labor Day.

Other European markets also gained on Monday, with the Stoxx Europe 600 index (SXXP) adding 0.2%. See Europe Markets.

"The underlying sentiment seems to be one of optimism, despite these ongoing concerns that the U.S. could still see a double-dip recession," said Ben Potter, market strategist at IG Markets, in a note to clients.

In the telecommunications sector, shares of Vodafone Group PLC (VOD) added 0.5% following media reports that the firm has started a search for a new chairman to replace John Bond. See more on Vodafone.

Shares of Cable & Wireless Worldwide PLC (CW) closed down 0.3% though earlier in the day they were the biggest percentage gainer in the FTSE 100 index. The Independent newspaper reported Sunday that Singapore Telecoms is considering a bid for Cable & Wireless. Last week there were media reports that AT&T Inc.
T, +0.38%
was planning a potential takeover of the British firm.

BP revives Alaska asset sale plans: report

Oil giant BP PLC (BP)
BP, -0.55%
advanced 1.2% in London trading. Citing unnamed banking sources, the Financial Times reported that BP has revived plans to sell part of its stake in Prudhoe Bay, the huge field in Alaska.

Earlier this year, BP was in talks with Apache Corp.
APA, +0.03%
to sell it half of its 26% stake in Prudhoe Bay, but the deal failed. Apache and Occidental Petroleum Corp.
OXY, -1.83%
are currently seen as potential buyers, the FT said. See more on BP's plans.

Several European airlines are scheduled to report traffic for August this week.

Shares of easyJet PLC (EZJ) rose 1.3% after the low-cost airline said the number of passengers it carried in August increased 8.4% and its load factor also improved.

Shares of British Airways PLC (BAY) fell 1%. Executives at British Airways and Iberia Lineas Aereas de Espana (IBLA) have identified 12 companies to potentially buy or merge with once their own merger is finalized, the Financial Times reported. The list includes budget airlines as well as larger full-service carriers in several countries, the newspaper said.

In the metals sector, shares of Russian steel maker Severstal (SVST) gained 0.4% after it announced a return to second-quarter net profit. Read more on Severstal.

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